Agrobiodiversity of the Senú Indigenous Communities of Northern Urabá (Antioquia): A Bid to Consolidate Food Security

Abstract

This article documents the process of agroecological recovery among the Senú Indigenous communities of northern Urabá, Antioquia, begun in 1995 with support from Swissaid and the Indigenous Organization of Antioquia following the Senú people's forced displacement in 1994. The authors characterize the high varietal diversity recovered in Senú agroproductive systems, documenting 32 rice varieties, 27 maize, 29 cassava, 19 musaceae, 10 yam, 11 sugarcane, and 5 bean varieties, plus agroforestry systems with approximately 27 fruit, medicinal, and timber species. The text argues that this agrobiodiversity functions as an in situ germplasm bank, constituting a strategy for food security, sovereignty, and cultural heritage conservation for the Senú people.